Thanks for getting back to me with this info, particularly that the Bungendore Road tree work should now have been completed to the standards you reference in your email. I have not been able to view the works myself, as I am unable to drive while recovering from a minor op.

Given the concerns of many Bywong and Wamboin residents over the aesthetic and conservation values of roadside trees and the impact of pruning them, I am copying this email to the Secretary of the Wamboin Community Association, David McDonald. I suspect other rural Community Associations in the QPRC area would be similarly interested.

I have also copied in Clrs Marshall and Harrison, who have shown an interest in such concerns when aired in this part of QPRC.

Your email has prompted a few more queries:

Are there any other roadside tree works scheduled in the near future for the Bywong or Wamboin area? If yes, please advise the dates and locations.

AS4373-2007 – Pruning of Amenity Trees is only available by purchasing it ($112 for 14 pages!). I assume the RMS documents you mention are: Managing Roadsides: Planning/ implementation/ Monitoring and Evaluation, all of which are available on the RMS website. Please confirm this assumption or specify the relevant RMS documents.

RMS Managing Roadsides: Planning mentions that Councils are encouraged to draft Roadside Vegetation Management Plans (RVMPs). Does QPRC have a RVMP or equivalent, as I can’t find it on the QPRC website? If yes, could you please advise how the public can view it.

IF there is a QPRC RVMP (or equivalent), did it include consultation with community representatives, as recommended in RMS Managing Roadsides: Planning (quoted below)?

Where possible, community representatives should participate in the development of the RVMP. This will provide valuable local input and assist in balancing the management options at a local level. It may also engender ‘ownership’ of the roadside reserves, through Adopt-a-Road programs, Landcare or Bushcare activities, all assisting in delivering management objectives for the area. Councils should identify local groups to consult with, or provide other opportunities for community input when developing the RVMPs. Other stakeholders also need to provide input including the RFS, Department of Primary Industries, Local Land Services, and Roads and Maritime Services. The creation of a group of such stakeholders is a good way to facilitate input when developing the RVMP.

IF community representatives were consulted, who was consulted and when? (My hope is that the Bywong and Wamboin Community Associations were included, being the most obvious local community groups.)

RMS Managing Roadsides: Monitoring and Evaluation recommends that RVMPs be revised to take account of changes, including:“Community interests, values and activities. Have community values, attitudes and behaviours regarding roadside environments changed? If so, what impact will this have on actions in the RVMP and their implementation?”

This document also recommends that representatives of community groups are included in a RVMP Monitoring, Evaluation, reporting and Improvement (MERI) committee. Please advise the current timeframe for revision of the RVMP or equivalent. I note that any identifiable shift away from the community values elicited at the time of drafting the existing QPRC RVMP or equivalent would trigger a revision of the RVMP, and that the Bywong and Wamboin Community Associations should be invited to participate.

Please accept my thanks in advance, and also my assurance that these are not frivlolous queries, but are issues of concern to many rural residents who place a high value on the aesthetic and conservation values of their locality.

Mayor Tim Overall has asked me to respond to your enquiry about the roadside vegetation work taking place on Bungendore Road.

I have spoken to the relevant area of council and can advise that the current works is necessary in order to reduce ongoing safety concerns of low hanging branches at risk of being hit by tall vehicles or falling onto the roadway.

Council staff adhere to RMS vegetation management guidelines as well as AS4373-2007 – Pruning of Amenity Trees. Staff generally use a three cut method to undertake tree pruning, where only a small number of limbs in an area require removal. For larger projects, staff use a mulching head, where it is able to be safely deployed. Council staff then clean the removed branches using a pole saw to square up the cuts.

Due to staff illnesses, a number of limbs on Bungendore Road were left un-trimmed last week. The crew should be back on site today (Tuesday) to tidy up that area and carry on with the rest of the vegetation maintenance.